Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby talked about future reforms and the legitimacy of the Freddie Gray case among other things in a one-on-one interview with ABC2's Kelly Swoope.
"This was not an easy decision. As a mother you know, I'm a fighter. And if it were your child you would want somebody to fight for you," Mosby said.
In the end Mosby says it was a battle her office couldn't win and that became crystal clear after Judge Barry Williams acquitted three of the officers from the bench.
"He's going to take the evidence and he's going to believe what he wants to believe. That's his right to do so. So he didn't agree with the state's case and he's well within his right not to," she said.
To critics who accused her of a rush to judgment of the officers, Mosby defends her actions.
"We affirmed the legitimacy of our prosecution as we survived 13 motions for dismissal and prevailed in 135 motions," she said. "So what I say to the critics is that it's absolutely absurd for them to think that the legitimacy of this prosecution was anything but legal."
Complete Freddie Gray coverage
Despite the outcome, Mosby believes her office made the right call to prosecute the officers. She doesn't believe her office got cooperation from the entire police department accusing some of hindering her investigation .
"We work very well with the police department" Mosby said. "And these cases were not an indictment on the entire police department, even the investigation was not an indictment on the entire department there were certain individuals within the police department that were looking to disprove the state's case."
"I am not anti-police, and that's what I make clear. I am anti-police brutality," she continued. "This does not and should not affect our relationship, because in the end what I've learned is that it's not just police officers where they shouldn't police themselves. It's any profession. The police officers are like a brotherhood right. If I was prosecuting my brother I would have to recuse myself."
<span style="font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: transparent;">Follow Kelly Swoope on Twitter</span></span>@SwoopefromABC2<span style="font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: transparent;"> and like her on</span></span>Facebook<span style="font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: transparent;">.</span>
Fraternal Order of Police spokesman Gene Ryan said the nightmare that began May 1, 2015 when the six officers where criminally charged is finally over.
Mosby said it will never be over for Freddie Gray's family. While her loss can't be compared to that of a family member, she said the past 14 months have been tough.
"I've gotten numerous racist hate mail and death threats" Mosby said. "But one of the reasons why I brought the press conference to the community was because I wanted to remind people that this is not about Marilyn Mosby as much as the media has attacked me and my credibility and tried to make it about me. This has never been about me. This has always been about a 25 year old man who ran from the police and that decision turned out to be a fatal decision."
Looking back, Mosby says some good has come from this tragedy.
"The officers are not required to secure prisoners and seatbelt them. When somebody asks for a medical attention officers are now required and it's mandatory for them to call a medic," she said.
But she believes there's still work to be done in Baltimore and beyond.
"It's time for systemic reform, and it's not just in Baltimore city, but it's all across the country," Mosby said. "That's what I said about now it's time to take up the issue, now it's time for a national reform."
Mosby said she doesn't mind if the case defines her because, "I'm fighting for justice."
<span style="font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: 700; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: transparent;">Download the ABC2 News app for the</span></span>iPhone,</span></span>Kindle<span style="font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 128); font-weight: 700; font-style: italic; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: transparent;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: 700; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: transparent;">and</span>Android<span style="font-family: Arial; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: 700; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: transparent;">.</span>
